


Four Steps To Harmony (It's not as easy as it seems)

by Lia404



Series: Fix-it With Music [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Akechi Goro Lives, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Battle of the Bands, Competition, Fix-It of Sorts, Friendship, M/M, Mending Relationships, Music, Not everyone plays by the rules, Post-Canon, hints at Yutaba, rehearsal, they all play an instrument or two, yes there is a Code Lyoko reference hidden in there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-30
Updated: 2020-09-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:40:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26198008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lia404/pseuds/Lia404
Summary: A college student now, Ren goes back to live in Leblanc and rekindles with the former-Phantom Thieves. It’s a strange twist of fate that they realise they know so little about each other--like the fact they all play music.Alas, it turns out that taking down a god together is not enough to turn a group of friend into a wonderful music band.Ren learns despite himself that it will take a lot of rehearsals and a bit of competition to be able to rekindle with his friends...Never mind failed solos, bad rhythm breaks, terrible sound feedback that gives you tinnitus or the fact that the boy whose life you saved from the depths of the collective unconscious has been ignoring your messages for months: The Show Must Go On.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Amamiya Ren, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist
Series: Fix-it With Music [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1718110
Comments: 18
Kudos: 40
Collections: Shuake Big Bang 2020





	1. STEP 1 : Have A Common Interest

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tomi_Lang](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tomi_Lang/gifts).



> I'm not sure how it all started. Maybe it was [that P5D song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQFkn4AXfqg), or maybe it came even earlier, but the only thing I know is that we started discussing the Band AU a LOT with Tomi.  
> We had big plans, but as usual, it takes time to write.... And then I slowly started giving life to the post-canon AU that would become Fix It With Music.
> 
> There will be 4 chapters in total and I'll be posting every Sunday evening at around 9pm GMT+2.

It felt strange, being back there, the eight of them in the attic-turned-nice-living-room. The place was still big enough not to feel too cramped even after having set most of his boxes among the furniture.  
Ren swiped his brow and took in the state of the room. 

Sojiro had really gone out of his way to welcome him back after Ren's not-ideal year away in the countryside. Ren had kept to himself, mostly, but he had a hunch that Leblanc's owner had heard about the cold shoulder everyone in Okina had given him. Maybe his parents had called (ha! Unlikely. They were too happy to see him gone for good). Maybe Futaba had managed to pick his seemingly-innocuous message for exactly what it was, and spread the word.  
_I can't wait to come back home_.

Ren wasn't sure what had happened, but he was sure this was where he was now: home.  
The old shelves in the back of the attic were still here, crammed with coffee bags and crates, but neatly stacked in a well-defined side of the room instead of bursting and devouring half of the space like they used to do.  


The rest of the attic, though—it definitely had changed. 

Ren’s jaw had almost dislocated when he’d got in there, expecting the usual mess and dust.  
The place was spotlessly clean.

The old TV and computer were still here, ageless remnants of his latest stay in the room, but the old desk had been changed with a bigger and sturdier one, and the sofa’s mattress had been replaced so it was infinitely more comfortable.   
In the corner beneath the window lay a new bed—a real one!  
His former display shelves had been traded for a nice piece of modern furniture, an open wardrobe with windowed shelves on the side so he could still display small mementos of his friends. 

But it was the top of the stairs that had really taken him by surprise, or rather, the loud “clunk” that had startled him out of his baffled staring at this new, improved attic.

A trap door. 

He hadn’t noticed it while getting inside, but it seemed obvious now, its hinges fixed on the top of the stairs.

Taking in the baffled look on the boy’s face, Sojiro had smirked and shrugged. “That was long overdue. This really is your room now. You’re in charge of getting the beans down when we need them, but this set aside, you finally have your privacy. Your friend Haru helped me set an AC, too. ”

Then the old man had waved and walked to the stairs, and left Ren to his silent marvelling, closing the trap door after himself as he’d gone down, his steps muffled—it was quite soundproof. 

_ Ren had a room with a door that closed _ .

That was a luxury he never thought he could dream of for this place.

At the moment, though, the trap door was wide open, revealing the figure of several other young people looking around the mess they’d just brought up.

“Was that the last box, Renren?”

Ren dusted his hands on his jeans and cast a glance on the newly-packed room, before turning to Ryuji.

“I think it was.”

Ryuji grinned. Ann passed behind him and let her body gracelessly flop on the couch, heaving a loud, relieved sigh. Haru giggled and promptly followed suit, while Futaba rushed to monopolize the bed.  
Makoto and Yusuke just stood behind him, admiring their handiwork.

“Really Ren, I could have sworn you didn’t have that many things when we helped you pack last time.”

Ren let out a nervous chuckle and rubbed his neck.

“Yeah, that was because…”  
“Because this guy’s parents suck!” Morgana helpfully prompted. Ren’s face fell and he scowled at the not-a-cat.

“Mona…”  
“What? It’s true! They basically told you to take everything you had and not bother to come back! Who does that? Seriously, I don’t even get why you went ba…”

Ren promptly grabbed one of the pillows laying on the sofa and threw it to Morgana, who jumped and yelped out.

“You know full well why I went back, and it’s not a problem anymore, right? I’m here, now.”

He turned back to his friend, beaming a smile that maybe didn’t fully reach his eyes.

“Ready to get to uni with you all!”

For a short second, the atmosphere became heavier.   
Ren hadn’t told much about his life back at Okina, only talking about outings with his cousin Yumi when she visited, or how he was preparing for entrance exams. No one really understood why he’d gone back—all of his messages had made him sound lonelier than ever. 

“Because it’s my family. At least I still have one. I can’t mess it up,” he’d told them when he’d been back for a few days in Tokyo during the Golden Week.

At least Morgana had been there with him, but he still firmly refused to talk about anything that happened home.

Then Makoto, clearly embarrassed at the shift in the atmosphere, averted her eyes to a side of the room, and suddenly stopped on the corner of the bed.

“Uh? You play the guitar, Ren-kun?”

The others followed the direction and all eyes fell on a guitar bag laying on the side of the bed. 

“Ah…”

Ren lowered his head, visibly flustered.

“Yes...? I… started playing in middle school, but gave up after… well. I only got back to it last year, when I was bored. It’s been a while, though. I’m not so good.”

His hand rose to his neck, but before he had the time to rub it in his usual bashful manner, Morgana jumped on the bed.

“This dude’s too humble, seriously. He’s  _ good _ . Like, really good.”

It was getting hard to ignore the spark of interest in the others’ eyes. Ren gave up and let his arm fall back before shrugging.

“Okay, alright, I do like playing the guitar, I’ve been training a lot—why are you all focusing on this?”

“You know”, Ann pondered, a finger to her lips. “It’s funny how despite spending a year together and sharing so many weird experiences, we still know so little about each other. I’m a musician too.”

Ryuji gasped.

“Whaaaaat? How am I learning that only now? We’ve known each other for literal  _ years _ , Ann!”

“Yeah, well. At first I was just using the guitar as a prop for a shooting, but the photographer was a bassist and she taught me some lines and then I just… pestered my parents to get one. It was nice to do something different, not visual for once. A cool outlet.”

Yusuke hummed thoughtfully.

“I do understand the appeal of doing some different kind of art. I’m a bassist too, now.”

Ryuji’s voice strangled in his throat.

“You… what?”

Yusuke shrugged.

“Futaba thought I’d fit the archetype.”

Futaba snorted from the bed she was perched on and mumbled something like “just look at him”. Yusuke ignored her.

“I ended up liking it more than I thought, although I will never devote myself to music as I do for visual art. It’s still a new means to create, and all means are good to explore. Beauty is not only in sight, but also in sound.”

“He’s good, too! We’ve done some funky mixing drum n’bass together and it’s pretty fun.”

“Wait, Futaba, you…”

Futaba shrugged in turn.

“Well, I play the keyboard and I mix, duh. I don’t know why but… well, it always seemed obvious to me that I’d play the keyboard. It started as a joke with Yusuke, but we got into it and you know how he gets, with the whole mumbo-art-through-tiny-specks-of-life-jumbo… At first I just wanted a soundtrack for some game I was trying to code, but then I got bored and the music part became interesting. Yusuke drew some stuff that went along.”

“It makes for a fantastic experience of senses. A true musical scenery.”

“Yeah, that kind of stuff. Got unexpectedly popular on YouCube and NoiseFog too, so it was a win-win situation.”

Ren scrutinized Futaba and Yusuke, a hint of wonder in his eyes. The others didn’t mention anything, but the way Yusuke walked to the bed and to lounge at its feet, centimeters away from Futaba’s dangling hand, betrayed a comfort he had never noticed between them before.

It shouldn’t be so much of a surprising development, he pondered, doubting his two friends had noticed it themselves.   
He wondered how much more he’d missed in his year away.

The former leader let his gaze roam around the room while his friends all started getting more comfortable. Makoto grabbed a chair and Ryuji gracelessly let himself flop on the floor, his back resting on the end of the sofa.

Ren elected to go sit at his desk, a good viewpoint to see the whole group now lounging in the attic.

“I’m a cellist,” Haru piped in, breaking Ren’s train of thoughts, “I’ve been trained to play the cello since I was a young child. It’s a very noble instrument. But ever since Father’s death and with the Metaverse gone, I found myself with an unexpected burst of energy…”

“Yeah, I remember you wielding that axe when gardening when I visited you a few months ago. You almost scared me out of my skin.”

“...so I picked up the drums! It’s amazing how it helps me channel this energy into something positive. It’s way different from gardening, but it’s so satisfying. Also… My shareholders hate it when I tell them I didn’t hear their calls because I was playing.”

Perched on her pile of book boxes, with an angelic smile gracing her face, Haru sure was a scary woman. It didn’t prevent Ryuji from almost snapping his neck with how fast he turned to look at her.

“Wait, seriously? We gotta battle, Haru! I want to try and do a drum session with you!”

“Ryuji, you…”

“Ah. Yeah. Mom got me a kit when I was a kid. Because I was kind of... an unhinged kid or something?" Ryuji's face darkened at the memory. "And a counsellor said it might help me…”

He cast a sideway glance to Haru.

“...channel my energy, she said. Seems like it’s a common thing, uh.. But then I got into tracks instead, and then my knee got hurt, and then… Well. It’s been a while since I last played. I used to be pretty good though, I’m sure I could get back to it.”

Ryuji let out a sheepish laugh. Makoto cleared her throat.

“Alright, so what we are basically saying is that we all play an instrument, some of us have been doing it for years, and we never knew about it?”

"Wait, you too, Makoto?" asked Ann with interest. Makoto simply nodded.

"I also play the guitar."

Ryuji snorted.

"Should have seen it coming, what with all the leather and motorcycle. Do you also have a studded jacket?"

Makoto glared, but her face promptly softened.

"I suppose it really has never come up. We were so busy... And then we just..."

They all look at each other, a hint of guilt in their eyes.  


“Has it really been so long since we last _really_ talked to each other?”

“I guess this specific topic never really came up, did it?”

And really, it hadn’t. 

After their tumultuous year together, they’d all gone back to their lives. So many things needed to be mended, along with keeping up with the everyday life that hadn’t stopped going on in spite of the events, that they’d almost fallen out of touch. They owed their gathering to Futaba for meme-ing in the group chat often enough to keep the interactions going.

Ren remembered fondly some meme trades that went on late in the darkness of his bedroom at his parents’. At the time, he’d been almost able to hear his adoptive sister and her trademark snark in his head as he’d read the messages.  
He also remembered how his heart had clenched when Makoto had scolded them, and then the whole group had exploded and even Haru had taken their defense and Morgana had said to go to sleep, and…

...and the last member of the group chat had remained desperately silent.

Ren had seen Goro Akechi marked as active a few times, but never dared write him. It was good to know he’d made it out, he’d redeemed himself, he was still alive and free despite everything.  
Ren knew he had even talked to Futaba and Haru once he’d been out of prison, but none had told him what they’d discussed.  
And then… Goro Akechi had entirely disappeared.

It hurt that he’d avoid them, that he’d avoid  _ him _ . Ren thought they had something, some kind of mutual trust, but Akechi had just ignored him entirely. It stung. Ren did his best to understand.  _ This can’t be easy for him _ , Makoto had said. This probably wasn’t.  
Or maybe he didn’t have anything to say.  
Maybe he just didn’t dare say anything.

Still, Akechi had never left the group chat, and Ren hoped it meant something.

He shook himself and looked fondly around, taking in all his former thieves again. They hadn’t changed much, save for clothes and hair, and maybe a glimpse of maturity in their eyes, but Ren couldn’t be too sure. 

Hopefully, being in the same city again and even attending the same university as Ryuji and Ann would allow him to renew his bonds.

Now was as good a time as any to try and mend the group together again. The opportunity was too good to pass. 

These people were his past teammates and he really didn’t want to lose what they all had with each other. The camaraderie, and the strong bonds, and each others’ presences and friendships… He wanted to bring the fire back, bring their whole, mismatched small family together.

He fiddled with his hair a bit and broke the silence.

“So… maybe we could get together to play sometime?”

Six shining pairs of eyes looked back at him.

The faces all broke into smiles and nods.

"You'll have to teach me how to play the bass, now, Lady Ann!"

Futaba affectionately smothered the cat under a pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting slow, putting things together...  
> See you next week for the first rehearsals!


	2. STEP 2: Have a Common Goal (kind of)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ren had thought music would allow him to fill in the void.  
> Ren was wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still a bit slow, but no worries. Things are picking up.

_ It shouldn’t be this hard _ , Ren frustratingly pondered while getting ready for the night.

The studio Haru had found for them was a gem. A beautiful place filled with all the greatest gear they could dream of.

Every time they met there, they were all at least a bit enthusiastic at playing together--but they never seemed to find the right pace.

If Ren was totally honest with himself, though, he had to admit the first sessions together were actually quite great. They were elated to gather again, about once a week or so “It’s just like the old times, without the fear of being found out or of dying!” Ann was cheerful to note). It also allowed them all to go back to practising music more, something they all had left behind at a moment in their lives.  
But soon enough, it became obvious that it wouldn’t be so easy, and their practise sessions became strenuous.

Not everyone was free at the same time, and even if they were, they couldn’t work in sync. The Metaverse days seemed long gone, along with the small moves that made them  _ get _ what the others were about to do. 

It was frustrating to say the least.

“RYUJI, STOP!” Makoto yelled over the noise. It wasn’t enough. 

“RYUJIIII!” Ann waved her arms. The crashes and bangs went on.

Ren put his fingers in his mouth and let out one sharp whistle.

Ryuji stopped.

“Ryuji, seriously, I get how thrilling it is to improvise breaks, but eight-bar breaks are overkill.”

“TWO BARS ARE ENOUGH RYUJI DAMN IT!”

“...what Futaba said. Can we please try again with only two-bars breaks, please?”

Ryuji huffed and gave a sharp nod.

They went on, and the troubles kept piling up.

Futaba’s effects messed up with the other sounds, Makoto somehow lost all her picks and accused others… After a few hours, they all started to get disgruntled.

Ren fumbled a lot too. He winced when Makoto barked at him after an especially-terrible improvised solo. Right. He hadn’t noticed the song was tuned in E minor. He was off-key for the whole thing.

Even Ann, usually cheerful and bubbly behind her bass, was giving him the stink eye from the corner she was sitting in, waiting for her turn to play.  
Then Yusuke broke a string, and the focus shifted to the other bassist of the group.

“Yusuke, seriously, dude, who even breaks an effin  _ bass _ string? These things are sturdy as hell!”

Yusuke only gave a frustrated shrug and held the bass out for Ann to take it back.

Ren looked around. The scene was a disaster: there they were, the seven of them (plus a yowling cat who had given up trying to be encouraging and was now sulking in a corner with his paws on his ears) meant to be having fun, but struggling with their instruments instead.  
It was not that they were  _ bad _ , per se. They were all quite good, individually. They had shared their skills, done tiny shows in turns, and everyone had been enchanted.

It was just that they didn’t  _ work together _ .

Ren couldn’t shake away the absolute wrongness of it all. Long gone was the time when they could work in harmony, each of them wordlessly understanding the next step to take when facing monsters from the unconscious collective.  
Now there was a lot of shouting instead of knowing glances. A lot of “WILL YOU PLAY ALREADY” instead of cheeky baton passes.  
A lot of frustration instead of the satisfaction of a job well done.

And yet, despite how awkward it was, Ren still looked forward to every sort of “jamming session” they managed to get, because he’d only been in college for two months but his everyday life was, to be honest, boring as hell. 

Like being back to Okina, only with a lot more people and noise around. And more homework. His studies were taxing, but in no way exhilirating. He didn’t regret choosing his courses, he was quite close to happiness with his workload, his friends around him, his job at Leblanc.  
Close to happiness.  
Just… not quite there.  
It was slightly lacking. 

This time no one knew him, contrary to high school when he was the infamous delinquent, and as much as he _ hated _ it back then, he almost missed it. The apprehension. The thrill.  
He missed being able to let it all out. He missed it in Okina, because what could replace the excitement of gathering your own inner self and shout it out? What could fill in the void left by Arsene’s voice within him?  
He had thought music would be the answer, but it ended up wrong.

Sure, he still had Ann and Ryuji to hang out with at uni as often as he could. He also had all his friends and confidants around Tokyo; it felt good going out and meeting them, seeing the paths they’d taken and how much they’d evolved during the year he was gone.   
It still felt weird, though, like he’d suddenly gone from the central character to a mere observer, and his friends from then had found other people to talk to, to rely on.

Maybe he just missed the tight companionship they used to have.   
Maybe he also missed the danger.

Maybe he mostly missed _being special_.

And that brought the other thing he had a hard time admitting to himself he missed.   
He was still hoping.

“Has anyone messaged Akechi?”

“How deluded can you get, leader?” Futaba sighed, and it baffled Ren that they would still call him leader, despite this whole musical debacle and how bad he had seemed to become at getting people to work together.

Makoto nodded.

“We’ve all tried at least once. He won’t answer, you know that. He doesn’t even read our messages.”

_ He reads mine _ , Ren thought, bitterly remembering how all of the texts he’d sent had been left on  _ seen _ .

He hadn’t even been the first to suggest inviting Akechi to their meetings; Haru had. For some kind of reason, she felt like having him here would help coerce them for better or for worse.   
That was what she’d said, at least. Ren thought he might have become easier to read while he was away, and everyone in the group could tell he missed the former detective and his nightmarish personality.

_ Fine _ , so Ren had kind of looked forward to seeing him again when he decided to come back to Tokyo. This shouldn’t be amusing or frustrating to his friend.  
He let out a frustrated sigh.

_ Just get your damn ass here and hang out with us, asshole. You’re free now. We didn’t go through Mementos and back to save your life for you to disappear on us one year later _ .

He angrily scrapped at the strings of his guitar, trying to figure out an effective rift so that there would at least be one nice thing out of this session. They wanted to write a song together, something as a reminder of their former adventures, but they were getting nowhere. Yusuke gave a polite cough that didn’t cover the guitar sounds at all-- but his comment afterwards did:

“Ren, you’re playing out of tune again.”

The guitarist felt his hand clench on the instrument’s neck. When had he become so prone to anger? Was it because he couldn’t unleash it in the Metaverse anymore? Had it really been that bad when he was back in Okina, or had he repressed it all and it came back bursting at his friends now?  
He took a deep, anchoring breath, and went to sit in a corner to tune his guitar.

“You know, dude, I don’t know why you won’t upgrade your guitar. You told us you had the means. I know you said you…”

“I’m not changing my guitar, Ryuji. I like this one well enough.”

“Yeah, but…”

“No but.”

Ryuji sighed, shrugged before he went back and handed his drumsticks to Haru.

Ren felt bitter when he realised this might very well be the closest thing they had to baton pass now.

They went on for a while, rehearsal after rehearsal, trying to figure out chords, tunes, rhythms, and lyrics for a song that was just plainly refusing to be brought to life.

One day, Makoto seemed to finally have enough.

“Ren, we can’t go on like this. It doesn’t work.”

Ren didn’t even have it in him to fight. Makoto was right.  
Makoto was  _ always _ right. Honestly, she should have been the leader, not him. Ren promptly shoved the self-deprecating thoughts away.  


They all sat down in their rehearsal room, their instruments laying beside them, to have the chat that they should have had since the beginning.

Ann opened up the conversation:

“Honestly, I like that we have these moments when we gather, but...”

Ren knew where she was heading. He agreed. He’d seen it too, clear as day, so he cut her off:

“I know. We have no idea where we’re heading to. We’re lacking a mutual aim.”

“That’s it, Ren!” Ann enthusiastically nodded. “Writing a song is not like planning to take over someone’s Palace. It’s not the same kind of rehearsal, it requires different equipment. And even if Haru got us some pretty nice gear, it’s not enough.”

“Yeah, dude, we need higher stakes if we want to focus on training. Something that will make us all motivated.”

“I thought we could gather and play too, at first, but I have to agree with them… All the best gear in the world won’t make us good. We need the thrill of a competition.”

In a way, it stung to think that something could  _ not work _ between them all, despite everything they’d been through.  
Yet at the same time, Ren felt somewhat comforted that everyone seemed to be experiencing the same frustration as he was. At least they were talking it out. At least they noticed the trouble, and agreed on it, and they maybe would work together to…

“Gotcha!”

Futaba, sitting slightly outside of the circle, her back leaning on Yusuke’s side, brandished her phone.

Ren took his own out, hope blooming within his chest for a moment…

_ Of course..  _

...and then no. No new message. It’d been a month and a half since he was back, and still nothing. Maybe he should just stop hoping.

It was just easier said than done.

Futaba’s screen displayed a notice written in bright colors. The only words Ren could make from it from afar were “BATTLE OF THE BANDS”.

“You want a challenge? You want some competition? This could set us back on track! I’m pretty sure we can manage something.”

Yusuke stole Futaba’s phone from her hand, ignoring her whining at the gesture as he held it above her head to read the notice.

“This is six months from now. We can already register. The prize is…”

“Who cares about the prize when we can have the  _ thrills _ ? I’m in!”

Ryuji was already grinning at the prospect. Haru cheerfully clapped her hands.

“Let’s get in! This is something we can definitely work towards winning!”

“But can we all get in together? It’s not like we can all play our instruments at the same time...”

“Well, if Haru plays the cello, and…”

Futaba grimly shook her head.

“Guys, we’ve got to face the music. This wouldn’t be any good: we suck.”

Even Ren winced in agreement. They had tried so hard to build something.

“What do you suggest, then? If we can’t work together…”

_ Competing against each other doesn’t mean we can’t work together _ , Ren’s mind supplied, memories of a white, princely, treacherous costume helping him through the darkness of the Metaverse.

“If we can’t work together, then we’ll have to work against each other.”

Futaba eagerly nodded.

“Dibs on Haru’s band. Haru, do you need a keyboardist? I’m the one.”

Haru chuckled.

“How about we go girls versus boys?”

“It wouldn’t be fair! That’s 4 vs 3.”

“Maybe, but you get the leader.”

As if he counted for two. Ren couldn’t help but bitterly think that they could be four, if only…  
But Goro wasn’t a musician, was he?

_ He did have a fantastic voice, though. When he hummed the songs, at that jazz bar… When he held himself against reporters and spoke in an assertive tone… _

Ren knew his voice was good too, but he hadn’t really tried singing while playing, and as certain as he could be about a few things, that one he wasn’t so sure about. It would need work. More work than if they already had a singer.  
Before he could object, though, Ryuji cuts his thoughts by throwing an arm around his neck carelessly.

“Hell yeah! With this guy, I’m pretty sure we don’t need more. I mean, do you remember how he did his whole ‘it’s showtime’ speech before attacking? M’afraid you’re going to work hard to catch up, girls.”

Ann scowled, ready to retort, but Morgana cut her up from the side of the room:

“Hey, guys, there’s no need to get all fired up...”

Ren was torn. On the one hand, he shared the concern he could hear in Morgana’s voice.  
On the other, he felt his pulse quicken through his skin. Seeing everyone’s eyes shine like this, everyone so ready for a good competition, was like a fantastic throwback to what they did best. Fight together.  
Or against each other, if needed.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

In the end, it was a win-win situation: he could get along with his former teammates in various outings, and they finally had an aim, something to fight towards.

The wolfish grin on Futaba’s face told and the shove Ryuji gave him told him it was the right decision.

They split the schedule of the rehearsal room and agreed to reconvene once a month, all together, without talking about the music they made, just for the sake of it.

It would surely end up in taunting sessions. It was exactly what they needed.

The night after the decision was taken, Ren shot another message to Goro. Just in case.

_ Hey. Do you still like music? _

_ Seen _ , his phone said the next morning.  
But he hadn’t received any answer.

Ren sighed and started getting ready for uni. He had to meet with Ryuji and Yusuke later in the week to agree on their setlist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fun finally begins.  
> See you next week for more rehearsals, and maybe, a secret weapon?...


	3. STEP 3: Have a Secret Weapon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Right, so maybe they're screwed.  
> Or maybe Ren can still salvage his band's honor, if he finds the help he needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally getting where I wanted them to go. Do check the notes at the end of the page if you want to know more about this chapter!

Ren huffed. It wasn’t fair.

The girls had snatched his cat.

Alright, maybe  _ he _ had driven him away, too.

"Ugh, guys, my sensitive cat ears get tinnitus every time with the audio feedback you get. Can’t you manage better sound mixing? I swear I’m going to go with the girls, at least Futaba knows how to mix.”

“Hey, Mona, do you know what's the name of the dude who found out about audio feedback?"

"..."

"LARSEN!"

Ren had felt pretty clever, with his intense pose as if he’d just summoned his persona.  
Morgana’s ears had just fallen, his feline face betraying how unimpressed he’d been.

"...right. I'm going _ now _ ."

No matter how hard Ren had tried to coax him back, Morgana still had gone, and the girls had decided to keep him under the fallacious pretense that Morgana could be acting as the indic going between bands to spread chaos.

Since then, Ren pouted.

"You know dude, you kind of deserved it."

"Ryuji, MY CAT HATES ME."

So now, their band was not only short of a singer, they also were short of their feline moral support. Not that Morgana was THAT much of a moral support, to be honest—he kept making fun of Ren’s voice.

He wasn’t wrong about it, too, and maybe that fact only made it hurt even worse. Even Ryuji and Yusuke were disappointed. Ren worked hard, but his voice still didn’t come across as well as he wished. He was good at spoken lines, and was pretty sure he could have rapped really well, but they were playing rock. His voice was too smooth, not grainy enough. As Yusuke put it, it was like putting velvet over concrete—the effect was all wrong, and all his vocal work wouldn’t change it.

It didn’t help that before Morgana left them, they had managed to sneak in the rehearsal room and see how the girls were doing.  
As it had turned out, they had been doing exceedingly well. Way better than anything they had achieved themselves, and it dampered Ren’s mood even more.

Except it fired him up, too, because he loved a competition. Honestly, his life as a uni student was only growing more and more boring. At least there was  _ something _ to look forward to now.  
Even if that was getting crushed at a musical contest by his own friends.

Especially since a few weeks later, Ren found that they didn’t have to get crushed at all.  
Ren had stopped hoping, and yet.  
In an empty room of his uni, the one he was used to rehearsing in by himself, the secret weapon he’d been looking for all along finally presented itself.

As it turned out, in a strange twist of fate, Goro Akechi was a student at the same university as Ryuji, Ann and Ren, except he hadn’t thought it fitting to mention.  
Or, you know. To say anything about how he was still alive and in Tokyo.  
Or just say “hello” to Ren. Answer his messages. Even with a mere emoji or something.  
Anything more than just tiny  _ seen _ notifications on a phone screen.

Ren was torn between awe and rage when he found out Goro was not only alive and actively avoiding them, but also infuriatingly  _ talented _ .   
Not that he had any doubt about it. Even before coming across the former detective, he  _ had _ hoped to recruit him for his voice, after all. 

He just hadn’t expected Goro to be really so good at singing. His voice had a wide range in tune and in expression, warm at times, sharp when needed. He was perfect for any kind of song they would like to play.

Every day they managed to meet in this empty classroom, Ren thanked the strange twist of fate that had allowed their encounter.

But what came as the  _ most surprising _ wasn't his voice, or the way they met after over a year of silence.

Some may have considered  _ most surprising _ that Ren would fall so fast for the boy as they met ( _ chance encounters _ , always), week after week, in the same empty classroom.  
But really, when he thought about it, their relationship was a long time coming, wasn’t it?  
It took waltzing around, but after they sorted it out, Ren was thrilled to discover that kissing Goro felt like coming home, except no one knew where Ren’s home was.  
(It would need fixing. Just not yet. Goro wasn’t too fond of outside displays of affection. Or of any sort of displays at all, as it seemed. It took ages to convince him to play along with them for the contest.)

The  _ most surprising _ thing that came with Goro was how good he was at playing the violin.  
And maybe  _ that _ was the secret weapon they really needed.

It took a lot of convincing, Ren trying to bat the blatant hesitation away from Goro’s face as he lined argument over argument about how agreeing to join the band would be fantastic for all of them. They didn’t have to tell anyone about their relationship if it made Goro uncomfortable. Or, not yet. The way Goro deadpanned “Sakamoto and Kitagawa are playing too” told Ren enough about his uncertainty about it all.

In the end, Ren wore him down and Goro yielded: the guitarist was pretty sure the violinist had missed the competition and was bored too, but he wouldn’t never admit it.

“So long as you keep your hands to yourself and they accept me in the band, I’m game.”

Ren would not look at a gift horse in the mouth. Sure, he would have loved to yell about their relationship to the world, but Goro was secret, Goro was insecure, and Ren was clumsy enough to hurt him.   
He kept it all to himself, close to his heart, barely brushing their hands in a supportive sign as they marched towards the rehearsal room to introduce the violinist to the rest of the band.  
Goro’s eyes met his.   
Ren saw all the mixed feelings. Goro was anxious, all the while warning him not to try anything. Ren merely smiled, grabbed the hand, and squeezed. Goro batted his hand away with dismay on his face, and really, it was adorable how Goro’s face could be the perfect picture of annoyance when he actually was just feeling flustered.

Ren felt like he was walking on clouds when he withdrew his hand and pushed the door.  
Ryuji greeted him from behind the drum set.   
Goro stayed in the back, still unseen.

“Renren, FINALLY! I thought you wouldn’t show up  _ again  _ this week. I swear to god if I have to listen to Yusuke do another weirdly awful bass solo…” 

Yusuke huffed.

“You don’t get it because it’s  _ art _ , Ryuji. I’m trying to capture Musical Cubism.”

Yusuke’s eyes became dreamy.

“The ineffable distortion of the fighting wills of human desire turned into music, the heart, bared on stage with its vexations, and the artistic destruction of sound to reshape it into a new, cathartic opus…”

Ren shook his head, trying to wrest away the beginning of a headache with the reminder that he was coming with his plan, who was still waiting behind the door.

“OK. Enough. Guys…”

Ryuji frowned at the serious air his leader was harbouring.

“Dude, are you alright? You’ve been missing rehearsal lately with weird and lame excuses, what’s gotten into you?”

“Is it the competition, Ren? You know we can call it out if it’s bothering you so much. You shouldn’t have to feel sick over it.”

“No, no, it’s nothing like that. No worries. It’s just… I have a secret weapon. We don’t have much time left before the competition, but I feel like with him, we still have our chances.”

“ _ Him _ ?”

As if on cue, Goro fully entered the room.  
Ren held his breath.  
Ryuji’s face took a nice, crimson color.  
Yusuke raised an eyebrow, said:

“Oh, hi, Akechi. Long time no see.”

...and went back to de-tuning his bass.

Ryuji cast him a disbelieving glance, then turned back to Goro, and exploded.

“Dude, are you even for real? You haven’t said a word in MONTHS? And you come here? What the eff, seriously, we tried to contact you! What are you doing here?”

Goro shrugged.

“Amamiya said you needed a singer.”

Ryuji turned his wide eyes to Ren and pointed to the former detective.

“This?  _ This _ is your secret weapon? What the HELL?”

Ren’s shoulders fell. He’d been so focused on how to get Goro to play for his band that he hadn’t really considered how his bandmates would react.  
In retrospect, it had been quite stupid of him. He was known to plan better than that. He’d lost his touch in strategy. But in the present moment, as Goro and Ryuji seemed to be having a glaring contest, it was maybe too late to think about it.

“Just listen to him, Ryuji, okay? Just let him try out?”

Maybe he’d just completely lost his touch in negotiation too. This couldn’t end well.   
Ren winced.  
Goro sneered.

“I thought you needed me, but if Sakamoto is confident that you don’t need help, I’ll be going.”

“Goro, please, don’t make it harder than needed.”

Ren grabbed Goro’s hand and squeezed again. Goro retracted his hand as if burnt by the contact.

“Don’t do this here,” he hissed.

Ryuji’s eyes narrowed. Yusuke shrugged:

“Why not? You had it a long time coming.”

Ren wished Yusuke would be slightly more helpful. He also wished he would show at least a tiny bit of surprise at the possibility of Ren and Goro being closer than expected.

“Alright, guys. Let’s play. Let’s show Goro why we need him.”

Ryuji opened his mouth to complain. Ren gave him the dark eye. He complied.  
Alright, so the Leader’s Death Glare was still working in spite of everything. Good to know.

They played the song they’d been rehearsing for a month, which still sounded as horrid as ever.

“...well. That was atrocious. I know you said you were terrible, Amamiya, but I didn’t expect something so appalling.”

Ren flinched, feeling Ryuji ready to explode behind him. He held his hand out, effectively stopping him.

“Let’s do it again. Goro, you’re with us.”

He expected some snarky remark, but Goro merely complied and took his position behind the microphone.  
Ryuji gave up on struggling when Ren settled his guitar strap on his back. He straightened up behind his drum kit and hit the cymbal four times to give the start of the song.

Ren felt a shudder course through his whole body as he played the first notes. It was nice, not having the constant concern about his voice sticking to his head anymore. He could focus on what he played, focus on arpeggios and solos and just… Let Goro do his thing.  
When Ren heard the melodious voice blend in with Yusuke’s bass lines, Ryuji’s beats and his own chords, he knew they’d found it. The missing piece, the one he’d expected so much.

They had it. They were playing together and for the first time in  _ too long _ , it sounded  _ good _ .

After the song ended, they took a minute to look at each other in a sort of silent agreement. Ryuji’s initial reluctance had sipped from his body, replaced by blatant signs of awe.

“Dude… Dude!”

Goro ignored him and threw an appreciative look around the room.

“This is a nice rehearsal place, Amamiya. I don’t understand why you had to crowd me in a uni room.”

“You know full well why I did, Goro.  _ Because you were here _ .”

Goro shrugged it off, not a hint of modesty showing in the gesture. Ren cast a glance at Ryuji, who seemed to want to say something that might have sounded like “ _ That’s _ why you dumped us for the latest rehearsals?!”  
Yusuke didn’t leave him enough time to go further, pointing at the case sitting at Goro’s feet.

“Is that a violin case, Akechi?”

Goro nodded and took his violin out. He tuned it and played a short and fast ritournelle.  
Ren couldn’t repress his fond gaze.  
Ryuji gawked.

“Holy shit, that’s more than good. That’s effin perfect! Akechi, you’re gonna make us  _ win _ !”

Ren let out a low chuckle and Ryuji turned a beaming face towards hims:  


“I’ll never doubt you again, leader.”

Goro lowered his violin.

“So. When’s the contest?”

“In three weeks.”

“And how many songs will you need to be ready by then?”

Ren winced. They had three, barely ready, and Goro had to train for them, but…

“Ideally, at least five.”

“Alright. Well, better get to work, then.”

And with that, they indeed set to work.

With their newest addition, it satisfyingly didn’t take too much time for the rehearsals to get better.  
It wasn’t easy at first. Goro took a snarky pleasure in antagonizing Ryuji as often as he could. It took Yusuke telling him that he was being “worse than Morgana” for the both of them to give it a tentative truce. Ren tried to keep everyone together and managed to negotiate a broader access to the rehearsal room so they could play together more often. 

Soon enough, Ryuji stopped trying to discuss Ren and Goro’s relationship. He knew there was something, but Goro would never let Ren display his affection before others. Instead, the violinist sassed. A lot.  
Ren took a devilish pleasure in sassing back, and it turned out that Yusuke was a lot better than they gave him credit for at this too.  
Somehow, the passive aggressive comments became their way to express what they needed to do.

“Sakamoto, will you stretch the fucking skins on your bass drum or do I need to read a manual and learn how to do it myself?”

“My bass drum works perfectly well.”

“Yeah, sure, except it’s so unstretched that it flaps more than Amamiya’s cat’s tail when he sees sushi. Do something. And Kitagawa, for the last fucking time, stop adding paint on the body of your bass. It alters the quality of its resonance.”

Alright, so maybe Goro was a bit bossy, but he indeed read a  _ lot _ , and he caught up extremely quickly, even managing to find ways to make them improve faster with tricks they’d never thought of.

Ren knew he wasn’t off the bossy-Goro radar, and found himself more than once the aim of a quip that he ended up not minding so much: the songs were taking shape, and slowly, they were going from “dismaying band” to “actually audible”. And then “really not so bad”. Maybe even “very enjoyable.”

Ren was proud of the result. Sure, sometimes they were still ridiculous, but at least they were ridiculous  _ with a violinist that had a golden voice. _ It was hard to refrain from holding Goro in his arms sometimes. He had outbursts of affection and pride. Goro always stopped him.

After their third rehearsal, once Ryuji and Yusuke had gone, Goro caught Ren’s elbow.

“Ren.”

Ren almost jumped in surprise. Goro never touched him during rehearsals.  
Goro never called him Ren during rehearsals.  
Ren held his breath, unsure what to expect from what was almost as big as a huge confession from his partner.  
But no matter what he expected, it wasn’t what fell from Goro’s lips:

“We need to get you a new guitar.”

Ren sighed, defeated and not a little disappointed.

“No, we don’t.”

“Why? We both know you have all the means to pay for it. Don’t make me believe you wasted all that money you made in Mementos two years ago. I remember the weapons…”

Goro shuddered.

“I remember how much you spent for my—”

“Yeah, well. I still have the money, a nice amount saved up for when I move out of Leblanc. Which is not just yet, so I  _ could _ buy a new guitar. It’s not that. It’s…”

Ren cast a wary glance at Goro.

“Well… you know that chess piece you keep in your violin case?”

Goro’s eyes widened.

“How do you…”

He promptly gave up.

“...you know what, don't answer. We have more important matters to address right now than you snooping in my stuff. Yes, I know. Is it the same for the guitar, then?”

“It is. It was given to me by someone very important to me. We didn’t see each other very often but…”

Ren brushed a finger along the guitar’s neck thoughtfully.

“Yumi’s the one who taught me about human nature. I was young enough at that time and she was always so mature. And exotic. Living in France does that. Thinking of it, there was always something about her, I wonder…”

Ren shook his head. Goro scrutinized his face with a glint in his eyes.

“Well, anyway. I think she did help shape who I would become, somehow. She taught me some fight moves, too. She’s always been a badass.”

Goro smiled a bitter smile.

“Yumi, eh?”

Ren observed him, before chuckling.

“Jealous, Goro? Yumi is my cousin. Her family moved to France when she was young, and she only visited from time to time. One day, I’ll go visit her. Morgana keeps pestering me about traveling to France.”

“Morgana met her?”

“Yeah. I picked up the guitar again because of her. She was like,  _ you’re so moody you stupid dumbass, you gotta let it out _ . And, well, I didn’t have any Shadow to lash out at anymore, so... “

Ren shrugged.

“Anyway. This was the guitar Yumi gave me when I started playing and I never changed it. I know it by heart.”

Goro sighed in defeat. Even the bossy singer knew better than to fight with sentimentalism.

“Alright. Let’s say you keep it. Would it really bother you bringing it to an instrument shop to get it checked up, fixed and change your strings?”

Ren puffed.

“I can change my strings very well myself.”

“Yeah, yeah, but it seems like you make very poor choices when buying them. Let’s give this guitar a good refresh, alright?”

“What do you know about guitars anyway?”

“Besides the fact that they’re the ultimate show-off instrument? A lot more than since you first walked into the classroom I was training in.”

“You mean you… studied guitar for me?”

Goro huffed.

“No, stupid. I had to check which music we could play together.”

“You’re kidding me.”

Ren was grinning.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,  _ Amamiya _ . You won’t win this Battle of Bands by flirting with me, you know.”

“I don’t need to flirt with you,  _ Akechi _ . I already  _ have _ you.”

Goro sighed.

“That you have. You’re insufferable.”

And really, who could blame Ren for beaming at that moment, when, alone in the rehearsal room, Goro leaned towards him and kissed him?  
This, more than any song they managed to make ring just the right way, felt like the accomplishment Ren was striving for.  
Not that Goro would be any closer to him at the next rehearsal, or any time they were out with people around them, he knew it.  _ Baby steps, _ Ren figured.

The contest was five days from then. They’d been rehearsing intensively for the latest weeks and had only one final rehearsal left

Ren could change his strings by then. And Goro would surely want to check Yusuke’s bass, too. Ryuji wouldn’t get to use his usual drum set during the contest; Ren still would have bet Goro was going to bring new drum sticks for him next time.  
As much as the singer didn’t want to admit it (all bark and no bite that he was) he was as into this as they were, the thrill of competition pulsing through his veins.

But with Goro pulled flush against him like he was right now, Ren felt like he didn’t completely care about competition anymore.  
Or more, like he didn’t have anything to be afraid of.  
He felt like things were coming together no matter the outcome of the contest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THEY'RE GETTING THERE. Next chapter will be the BATTLE OF THE BANDS ITSELF!
> 
> In the meantime, you can read [(You Play Me) Like A Fiddle](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21917188) if you want to know more about Goro and Ren's rekindling...
> 
> See you next week for the final chapter!


	4. STEP 4: (Finally) Have a Real Competition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's showtime.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final chapter, finally.   
> I'll leave all the emotional blurb for the end notes, but please, everyone, don't forget to have a standing ovation along with the crowd for [Kuma](https://twitter.com/kailkuma) who made the amazing art in this chapter. <3

Really, the look on the girls face when they recognized Goro was worth all the tongue-biting Ren had had to do to refrain from telling them who was their last member.  
Ok, maybe he felt a bit guilty at not telling some of his best friends that he was seeing someone, but then again, all’s fair and game when there’s a competition running.

Also, the thrill of keeping a secret like old times was nice.

“You cheater! You… You… How did you even?”

“Ah, dear Queen, but you should know that a Joker always has an Ace up his sleeve…”

(“Or up his ass”, Ryuji helpfully added in the distance. Goro elbowed him hard. Ryuji yelped.)

Makoto harrumphed.

“Well, I’m glad you patched things up at least. Or so it seems. But I won’t believe anything until I see it.”

Ren grinned to himself and nodded.

“Wait and see then, leader of the…”

He checked the listing taped on the wall of the room they’d been allotted to stock their gear and prepare in-between the rounds of the battle and chuckled.

“...Phantoms? I see you were pretty inspired for the name.”

“You’re one to talk, leader of the  _ Thieves. _ ”

Ren gave a toothy grin.

“Yes, well. Why change a winning team?”

Makoto’s eyes darkened.

“You’ve always been too confident,  _ leader _ . But you’re on, let's see who the _winners_ are. Give us your worst.”

She went back to the corner of the room where the girls were readying their instruments and whispered a few instructions.

(“You bet  _ we  _ will”, he heard Futaba mutter in the distance.)

Makoto wasn’t wrong, per se: Ren was probably displaying way too much confidence. At least way more than he was feeling at the moment. The girls were quite a sight: they’d opted for a punk rock look, all torn clothes and spikes. Ann had dipped her blond hair into temporary dye, so the end of her ponytails were now of a nice turquoise color. Makoto looked like a true biker, and Ren would have lied if he’d said she was anything but stunning.  
Haru had gone full good-girl-gone-bad, the clothes of a lolita gone dark, all black corset and laces and torn tutu.  
Futaba… Futaba was probably the most unexpected. 

“Alright girls, let’s go. We’ve got a few things to rehearse, and we don’t need an audience for it.”

Ren was used to seeing Futaba as a rather petite person, almost fragile. Now, with her baggy cyberpunk clothes, her flashy platform shoes and her—were these white lenses?—she could look at him in the eye (and without glasses) and he had a hard time holding her gaze.  
The grin she threw him when she caught him staring as she walked past him was nothing short of dangerous.

Ren was astounded. The only explanation was that the girls had stolen all his confidence: surely that was why he felt so wrong-footed, slightly helpless in his own sleeveless tank top, leather black pants, and high-heel boots. He knew these clothes fitted him to a tee, the same way they had fitted Joker years ago, but at that precise moment they felt just a tad “not enough”.  
He hated the feeling.  
He also hated how all the members of the other bands in the room followed the girls’ departure as if entranced. 

“Oi, Renren! Quit staring, or Gorogoro here is going to feel jealous.”

“Call me that once more, Ryuji, and you won’t have any arms left to beat those drums.”

Yusuke's voice broke the argument.

“Goro, would you please leave these arms and kindly bring them to me. Still attached to Ryuji would be preferable.”

In another corner of the room, beside a makeshift dressing table, the artist was shuffling through a small case filled with brushes and make up.

“Wait, dude, where did you find this? What are you...hey, that tickles!”

Ren observed his bandmates bickering from afar, his hands clenched on the rim of his tank top. Did they have any chance? He wanted to be confident. Their rehearsals had become efficient enough. He wanted to get on stage and steal the show— _ reveal their true form _ . He used to be good at that.

Ren sighed and checked the list again. There were twelve bands in total. The planning set  _ Phantoms  _ and  _ The Thieves _ to play with enough bands in-between that they wouldn’t have to interact on stage. At least not for the first round. If they made it past the first round, then…  
Ren tried to summon back the little of confidence he’d found while playing the week before, when everything had seemed to click so well.

“Yusuke, that’s rad! I didn’t know you could do that!”

“Ann taught me.”

“Wait, you became friendly with the  _ enemy _ ?”

“Who’s talking about enemies, Ryuji? I thought this was a friendly competition.”

Goro’s smirk could be heard in his voice.

“Yes, well, have you seen the smile they threw at us when they left?! We’ve gotta counter, man! Renren, come on, your turn to get all prettied up!”

One of the other bands giggled. Ren gave them the dark eye, then fixed his red fingerless gloves and turned to his comrades.  
And froze.

Yusuke was, well, Yusuke was Yusuke, Ren knew what to expect. He certainly didn’t think a studded vest would look so good on the artist of the group, but he had to admit that with his tight fitting black trousers that gave him legs for days, his loose sneakers and the purple shirt that added a perfect splash of colour to his whole attire, he was quite dashing. The slight makeup on his face to put the focus on his long eyelashes and high cheekbones only added to the out-of-this-earth feeling anyone got when looking at him.  
Ryuji was the picture of rock music, all asymmetrical patch-covered sleeveless vest on a torn shirt and cargo pants stuck into black ranger boots. His bare arms were covered with Yusuke’s painting, black swirls that looked like aggressive tattoos from a distance.

And Goro… Ren’s breath caught.

Yusuke had half-braided Goro’s hair, leaving only a few strands of hair to frame his face. His features were emphasized with make-up, carmine eyes made way more intense with kohl that fell on a side to trace a character 明 that dripped black and red on his right cheek. His legs were trapped in black belts that went down his thighs to circle the very tight dark blue trousers he’d stuck into knee-high black boots. He wore a simple white shirt, almost too casual, but the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and his hands wore fingerless black gloves and black nail polish. The shirt was open up to the fourth button, half-loose and half-tucked in his pants. The last buttons were open too, leaving barely anything of Goro’s torso and navel to imagination.

Ren’s mouth fell open as he openly ogled the picture of the good-boy-gone-bad his boyfriend was presenting.  
Goro only smirked. In a dumbed daze, Ren let himself get dragged to the dressing table.

“Go wild with the eyeliner, Yusuke. I’m going to check on the stage,” Goro said before leaving the room.

Yusuke did, while Ryuji messed Ren’s hair more than it usually was.

“Aren’t we overdoing it, guys?”

“Well, we  _ do  _ have to look the part of  _ Thieves _ , don’t we? And the girls definitely looked the part of  _ Phantoms. _ ”

“Alright, we’re done here. Let’s go check this stage too.”

They left the room backstage and met Goro on the side of the pit. The girls were nowhere to be seen yet, but the other bands waiting for the event to start had the air crackling with tension.  
They weren’t the only nervous ones, then.

Or maybe it was only Ren who was nervous? Ryuji was joking with Yusuke, and Goro just observed a technician setting up the stage with a tiny smirk on his face, his index tapping lightly on his crossed arms.

“How do you do that?” Ren breathed from behind.

Goro turned, eyebrow raised.

"Keep your cool, I mean."

"You've been in far worse situations, _Joker_. What's up with the sudden nervousness? Your life is not on the line"

_ I know, _ Ren thought, but he couldn't prevent it. The anxiety of performing in front of the small crowd that was getting in the venue was growing in his chest.

"Yes, well, it's nothing like an heist. Back then, we were prepared for the worst."

Goro let out a chuckle.

"So what, is it _really_ the lack of life-threats that gets to you? I am keeping my cool now just like I did back then: I am in control and I know what I’m capable of. And you should, too.”

Ren groaned.

“You weren’t here for our first rehearsals with the girls. It was a disaster.”  
“But I’m here now, am I not?”

The smirk grew toothy and,  _ oh _ , how Ren wanted to pull Goro into his arms right now, bury his nose in his neck, devour the skin and then the lips and maybe steal some confidence at the same time.  
But that wouldn’t help. At best, Goro would be slightly flustered, at worst he would be furious. Ren restrained himself. They didn’t need that.

The pit started to fill up with people—members of other bands, friends of them, curious passers-by. The room grew louder and louder until the lights dimmed and someone jumped on stage.

“Check, one, two… OK, everything is set up. HELLO TOKYO ARE YOU READYYYYY!!!”

A loud cheer erupted from the pit.

It was maybe a bit too much for a venue that could fit 300 people at most, but then again, who was Ren to judge? He had his show-off moments too, and being on stage surely was an experience that could get to his head.  
He nervously fidgeted with his gloves until Goro caught his hand to make him stop.

It was a small gesture, discreet enough that no one around had noticed it, but it was enough to anchor Ren. The warmth spread from his hand to his torso when Goro gave a little squeeze before letting go.  
They had it.

On stage, the host was reminding everyone the rules. Ren knew them by heart: they had read and planned their whole set thoroughly. 

For the first round, there were enough bands that each band could only play one song. “Make it your catchiest one!” the host said, as if they hadn’t already chosen which one to play.   
_ The Thieves _ played fourth.  _ Phantoms _ played eighth.  
There was enough time between their set that they could meet. Maybe taunt each other. Maybe chat with the other bands.  
Ren cast a glance at Ryuji who was already discussing beats with a guy wearing a heavily torn-up shirt. 

As the first band prepared, the host explained that all the voting was happening at the bar. Ren cast a quick glance. Some of the other bands were already getting glasses of strong alcohol there.  
Well. Either that turned them into musical geniuses they couldn’t win, or they would be easy adversaries. Either way was good for Ren. He liked a challenge, but he also knew the girls would be a big enough one.

The first bands played fairly un-noticeable songs. Ren noticed Yusuke cringing in front of the stage while the second band was playing.

“Why the grimace? It’s not  _ so  _ bad?”

“Ren, for all that is holy, please look at it! This is a disaster. The lights are  _ horrid _ . They don’t pair at all with the song. I’m going to have a word with the light artist. This  _ can’t _ happen during our performance. It would ruin us!”

As the artist turned to have a word with the boy behind the consoles at the back of the venue, Ren caught his arm.

“Yusuke, wait! They’re almost done, and we have to go prepare for our turn when the third band gets on stage. You can’t go now!”

“Ren, you don’t get it, we  _ have to _ …”

“Yusuke, listen to me. If we make it... _when_ we make it to finals, you get to talk to the light artist, okay? We can manage, and you can have your show. We just have to be this good. Do you think we can manage?”

Yusuke huffed, his nose in the air.

“How dare you think I’d doubt we’d make it to finals. Ren. We worked together. I only agree to create masterpieces. Of course we’ll make it to finals.”

Crisis averted, Ren led Yusuke to the backstage room where Ryuji and Goro were already waiting for them.

“So far so good. I can’t say we have that big a competition.”

“Agreeing with Goro here. Those dudes are good, but not  _ that _ good. We can do it, guys!”

They grabbed their instruments and got ready.

“I don’t know why you insist on bringing this splash cymbal specifically, Ryuji.”

“It’s my lucky splash! Also, it’s been signed by one of my fave bands. And no one ever dares use their splash cymbals. I just like how dynamic it sounds. It’ll make a difference, you’ll see.”

Ren knew Ryuji wasn’t too keen on playing on drum sets he didn’t know well. At their first rehearsals, he’d complained a lot about the set Haru had chosen. Then he’d brought the cymbal, and everything was fine.  
Every musician had their own odd habits, he thought, softly caressing the varnish of his old guitar’s body.

They heard the third band complete their song and thank the audience, and the host came and hustled them all on stage.

Damn. Yusuke was right.  
The lights were horrid.  
As they plugged their instruments and checked the tuning, it was hard to avoid the fact that—well. Ren really couldn’t see a thing.  
At times like these, he missed the power of his third eye. He wished he could focus on what was important only and avoid the headache he was sure to get from the overwhelming sensorial informations around him.  


Once they were all settled, he glanced at his bandmates, waiting for their approval. Behind his drum set, Ryuji grinned. Yusuke nodded, gripping the neck of his bass. Goro, kneeling beside his microphone, was getting his violin ready, but Ren had learnt enough to read the light in his eyes.  
He took a deep breath.  


_Showtime_.

Ren turned to the microphone, blinked the lights away, and tried to channel his Joker voice.

“Hi everyone, we’re band number 4. The Thieves.”

There was a mild cheer from the crowd. Ren thought he heard Ann whoop, and somehow, it was nice to know the girls were here, that they were still kind of working together.   
Ren went on.

“Tonight, we are going to play you a classic. Please sing with us!”

Goro got on his feet and adjusted his violin beneath his chin, drawing attention from the crowd who became louder.  
Ren watched him for the cue.

Goro started to play, and more people cheered this time. 

They’d chosen to play  [ Drunken Sailor ](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8g0vu) for their first song. It was efficient, catchy enough, and people were sure to love it. Plus, it allowed the band to show off Goro’s violin skills, and as the rhythm picked up in pace, Ren felt his body loosen up.  
The lights were still blinding but it was fine. He felt more at ease. Goro’s fingers went faster and faster, and Ren and Yusuke and Ryuji all followed him, and they all sang the choir along and…  
...it was a nice place to be, a place where they were perfectly attuned for once, and the audience followed them and sang along. Ren felt his smile spread, teeth showing as the rhythm became awfully fast but they kept going…  
And then the song was over.

It felt like the rush of adrenaline fell just as soon as it had started, the blinding lights still preventing them from seeing anything, but the yelling and cheering of unseen people in the crowd left them all beaming as they bowed.

“Please remember, number 4: the Thieves! Thank you!” Goro panted into the microphone, and Ren was sure the way he looked and sounded at that moment earned them about as many votes as the whole song.   
Or maybe he was just biased. Goro’s hair was stuck on his face with sweat, his grin wide, his eyes gleaming. Ren wanted to throw himself at him. Instead, he followed Ryuji and Yusuke backstage, leaving room for the next band.

They took a moment to reconvene and agree that so far, they’d been the best band and should get into the next round, but there were still four more bands to play.

“Don’t count your chicken before they’ve hatched, guys.”

Haru’s smirk was dangerous when they joined the girls back in the pit in front of the stage.

“I didn’t expect that, Akechi. Not bad. How long have you been playing?”

Ren shuffled awkwardly, wondering whether to leave his boyfriend or try and appease the situation.  
Ann did it for him by punching Goro in the arm.

“So you disappear on us for over a year and then you come back and try to steal our thunder? You  _ wish,  _ Mister! Just you wait!”

Goro tried a small smile. Ren tried to grab a hold of his nerves.  
Makoto met the violinist’s eyes, gave him a thoughtful gaze, then a sharp nod. And with that, it was like a peace offering. 

The boys settled beside the girls and commented on the next bands, until it was their turn to play.  
When Phantoms appeared on stage, a new, different atmosphere took over the venue.

“ _ They _ went to the light artist! We should have gone, Ren!”

Ren shrugged.

“We didn’t have enough time. We did really well without the lights, Yusuke. Let’s keep it for the next round.”

The lights were fantastic. Ren was ready to bet it was Futaba’s doing: black light highlighted the tiny touches of fluo each girl had on her clothes and Ann’s hair.

“They’re going strong for the first round, aren’t they?”

“Yeah, well, still a song contest. They look fantastic, but looks are not going to make them win the—”

“Hey people! We’re Phantoms, and tonight we’re going to cover a song I’m sure you all know, with our own special touch!”

Ann’s voice bounced cheerfully from the speakers surrounding the stage and the crowd roared back.

“...Okay, maybe they have an unfair advantage. But... we have Goro.”

Ren side eyed the violinist who was silently assessing the stage. Yusuke followed his glance and nodded.

“Ah, yes. I guess we have our own looks.”

That they had. As Futaba started playing chord after chord on her keyboards, distorting the sound to give a trippy atmosphere, he barely recognised the song, too preoccupied by the lost look on Goro’s entranced face. With his make-up and the lights of the stage reflecting in his eyes, he looked out of this world.

“ [ Another head hangs lowly ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxZG5PCoa4s) …”

Ren’s head snapped back.  _ Zombie _ , really?

Oh fuck, but Makoto  _ could _ sing. Why hadn’t he known that? She’d never really sung during the rehearsals when they were all together. They had missed out.

The lights shifted when they reached the chorus and the song picked up in intensity.  
The song was well known, but in a total opposition with the one the boys had chosen. Instead of singing along, the crowd looked enthralled by the atmosphere the girls created. Futaba’s synthetic sounds added to the original song, making it rawer, more intense, and Makoto’s voice broke exactly at the right place while Ann added some back vocals.

When the song ended, the lights faded to black. The audience remained quiet. Then the light became blinding again, and Ann beamed, yelling “Thank you!” in the microphone, as if freeing the audience from its dumbfounded state. The cheers were deafening.  
Ryuji’s face fell.

“What the eff. I can’t believe we’re going to be outvoted with  _ Zombie _ of all songs.”

Another band went on stage, and they were not half bad this time, but the performance of the girls outshone all the remaining contestants.

“And this is our first break! Time to get to voting, dear audience. Who will be the remaining four? Go get that drink and put in your vote!”

“Let’s grab some fresh air,” Goro’s voice reached Ren. He nodded and followed him. There, they both found Futaba, crouching in a corner, headphones firmly set on her ears.  
Ren felt his heart clench. No matter how confident she’d seemed, Futaba still wasn’t a big fan of crowds.  
He came closer and crouched beside her. Goro remained behind him at a safe distance, not far enough that someone would think they weren’t together, but not close enough to crowd Futaba.

“Futaba? Are you alright?”

The girl lifted her nose from the article she seemed to have been engrossed in on her phone.

“Uh? Ren? Oh. Yeah, yeah, I’m… It’s a bit of a lot, right? But it’s okay.”

Futaba’s surprised and uncertain face quickly morphed into a wolfish grin.

“Have you seen this? We had the whole place in a trance! Boom, baby, that’s what’s having a genius arranger does to your audience! Although...”

Her gaze turned inquisitive, focusing on Goro who was still staying in the back.

“...you did surprise us, you know. You really had a secret weapon. That was quite a show you put on. Can’t believe you’d let him steal your place from the limelight, Ren.”

“Nothing was stolen. I gave it willingly.”

Ren smiled and got back on his feet, leaning slightly towards Goro.  
Futaba’s eyes caught the motion and she raised an eyebrow, but didn’t mention anything.

Soon, the others joined them and despite the pretend animosity between both bands, they noisily discussed every performance at length.  
Ren wondered if they noticed how they had included Goro in their chat without him forcefully imposing. Quite the contrary: he was restrained, but every time he tried to get out of the circle, one of the others would ask for his opinion on something.  
Then Goro would answer with his trademark snark, and the others would snicker.

Something warm bloomed in Ren’s chest.  _ This _ felt like his group, the one he had wanted to come back. A band of misfits in weird clothes with strong opinions. He took a step on the side and just stared for a while, proudly. Then he reached out for Goro’s shoulder, maybe to give it a small appreciative squeeze, something no one would notice, or…

“The first results are in!”

Their chatter broke at once and they shuffled back in along with the rest of the bands.

“Thanks to all the bands who participated in this round! You were all fantastic and the bar has been busy all break long. So many votes came in, it was almost a tie. Alas, choices have to be made, and the audience has spoken.”

The crowd bristled with excitation.

“The four bands who will take part in the next rounds are…”

Ren braced himself. He was confident that they had done well enough, but maybe the audience wasn’t too keen on this musical style. A lot of contests like these relied only on sheer luck. And what if they’d gotten in, but not the girls? That would defeat the whole purpose of their participation. And if the girls had gotten in, but not them? At least they'd still be represented someway. He had to think of it as a small victory. He shouldn't be bitter about it. And what if…

He couldn’t go on with this train of thoughts: loud cheers erupted and Ryuji clapped his back, a huge grin on his face.

“We’re in, dude!”

Ren threw him a disbelieving look.

“Oh, don’t give us those eyes, Amamiya, you know we would get in. The girls are in too. We’re going last, right after them.”

They’d got in.   
Goro was right, he shouldn’t be that surprised, but it still meant… a lot. Ren shuddered. Where there had only been satisfaction, now a thrill was coursing. Competition was becoming tougher. They would have to fight.

He smiled a Joker smile and muttered “the show goes on”.

Ryuji smacked him on the back of the head.

“No need to be so dramatic, Renren.”

The first band set in place, two girls and two boys, all clothed the same way, while the host explained that this second round was their time to shine as a band with a three-song set.  
They realised they hadn’t decided on which song they’d play yet, not wanting to jinx their chance at getting to the round.  
It wasn’t their best planning, but they quickly settled on three songs, and as the band on stage started playing a catchy, poppish tune, Yusuke announced:

“I’m going to talk to the light artist. We can’t have a repeat of the fiasco of the first round.”

Ren’s eyes followed Yusuke as he elbowed his way to the back of the room, barely listening to the band.  
They were good. They still were not good enough.  
It didn’t prevent the audience from cheering louder.  
Once more, Ren’s nerves started to play tricks on him. 

Maybe Yusuke was right, maybe it would look better if the lights are right?  
But maybe having blinding lights directed at him allowed him not to notice the people in the audience?  
Ren felt Goro’s hand bump against his. Grateful for the comforting contact, he didn’t retract his arm and let the warmth of his singer sip through his moist skin.

The pit was getting more and more active. The second band was playing metal, and people had started jamming, jumping, singing along.  
Ren closed his eyes and let himself be carried by the atmosphere. The bass pounded within his chest, the crowd of anonymous people around him created a shield for Goro and him, the lights were flashing behind his lids. It was exhilarating.   
It didn’t last.

When the second band’s set was over, Ren opened his eyes, took a deep breath, choked on the room's smell of sweat, smoke, alcohol and excitation, and che cked around him.   
Ryuji was almost backstage; Goro was still at his side, observing him with thoughtful eyes. Yusuke was nowhere to be seen.

The girls hit the stage, and started introducing their set. 

“We have to go prepare. Where is Yusuke?”

“Hello again everyone and thank you for allowing us in this set!” Ann crooned in the microphone from the stage.

“He hasn’t been back since he went to fix the lights.”

“...don’t forget, we’re number 3 this time, and we are the band Phantoms!”

The girls started playing. Makoto struck three chords, Haru smashed a cymbal, Ann opened her mouth to sing…  
...and then the stage went dark and the instruments died.

Time stopped for a very, very short while, for everyone to understand what had happened.  
Then loud yelling came from the back of the venue. Ren turned and noticed Yusuke gesticulating wildly at the man behind the console.  
Before he could grasp the situation, the lights were back, but not the sound.

From behind the console, the engineer shouted: “Sorry babes, this weirdo crashed my console. It’s gonna take a while. You have the lights, and I think the host microphone is still working, but I can’t do shit for your instruments right now.”

The audience erupted in annoyed chatter. The host sheepishly came back on stage.

“I’m sorry for this delay, it seems like…”

Ren looked past him, noticing the defeated look on Ann’s face, Makoto’s furor as she laid her guitar back, and Haru getting up with a clear, murderous intent.  
Futaba…

Ren gaped when he saw Futaba rush to the host. A far cry from the overwhelmed girl hiding from the crowd from earlier, she stood proudly, grabbed the mic and yelled.

“We’re not done! Are you ready to follow us, guys?”

The other girls crowded the poor, babbling host, the audience cheering, eager to see what they were cooking up.  
Ryuji went to drag Yusuke from the consoles so they could regroup and maybe get ready for what was coming.  
Meanwhile, Ann, Futaba, Makoto and Haru hustled the host out of stage and gathered around the only microphone.

“Check, one, two...”  
“Check!”

Each girl checked the microphone in turn. Then, seemingly satisfied, Haru hummed a note. The others nodded, and, still gathered around the microphone, they turned to the audience.

Goro raised an expecting eyebrow.

"So Okumura has a perfect pitch, uh?.. That will be interesting."

Ren didn't know what to expect, but didn't have time to ask. Futaba hushed into the microphone.

“Shhhhh…”   


The whole pit held its breath.  
The stage had the most basic lighting, the instruments had been discarded, but the girls looked more dangerous than ever.  
They glanced at each other, Futaba snapped her fingers four times, and they went.

“ [ Master! Apprentice! ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCGQiGEYl4Y) ”

Ren froze. On his side, he felt Yusuke who was starting to shake with emotion.  
The audience roared.

“What the… what… when has Futaba learnt beatboxing?”

“I taught her.”

“You  _ what _ ? Yusuke! Why the eff didn’t you tell us...”

Yusuke shrugged.

“It hardly seemed relevant.”

“How did you learn how to…”

“I just did. It seemed interesting enough. It went along with my theory of musical cubism. Deconstruction of sound.”

“Okay. Okay. That’s… okay that’s a lot. How does Haru manage her low growl like this? And Ann can do lyrical? Since  _ when _ ?”

Ryuji’s eyes were those of a drowning man.

“Renren, how could we miss that at our first rehearsals? Why did you ever become a singer when we could have had  _ this _ ?”

Ren held his hands in front of him to protect himself.

“Hey! I never…  _ You _ decided I would be good at it! Turns out I wasn’t, and I found a great replacement, but I couldn’t plan… I couldn’t plan…  _ this _ !”

The girls had the whole audience entranced, chanting with them. Makoto and Haru held guttural rhythms that mimicked guitars, while Futaba was beatboxing, and Ann kept on, rendering the most impressive improvised acapella version of Wishmaster.

“I’m more interested in knowing  _ how _ they knew they had to prepare something like that. Maybe they’d decided they’d do it all along.”

“Uuuurgh… Eff this, the other bands and us are so done for. We’ll never beat this. Look at the crowd!”

As they concluded, the crowd indeed went  _ wild _ , erupting in cheers so loud it almost covered the sudden feedback coming from the speakers around the stage.

“It’s back!” the engineer from the back of the venue yelled, barely covering the sound of the crowd in spite of his amplified voice.

The girls bowed, then rushed back to their initial places.  
As the boys slipped backstage to get ready, Ren didn’t miss the murderous glance Futaba sent him.

They followed with a calmer cover of  [ Nothing Else Matters ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QohUdrgbD2k) , for which Futaba used her keyboard and created a symphonic atmosphere. Ann’s voice lost its lyrical aspect to go back to a more poppish one.

“Fuck, is there anything they can’t do?” Goro let slip between his teeth as the crowd cheered once more, and honestly, Ren was wondering too, anxious to hear the third song.

Then the first notes echoed through their backstage space and Ren felt Goro froze at his side.

“They’re crazy.”

“SING WITH UUUS!” Ann yelled into the microphone.

Recognizing the  [ Featherman theme song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd6TOk70Eq0) , the crowd burst. Laughter was heard, but soon enough, the whole venue was singing along.

“Guys. Guys, we’re so fucked. What do we do. Our setlist doesn’t hold at all.”

Goro grit his teeth.

“We don’t have anything better for now, so we stick to the plan.”

“But…”

“Goro’s right. If we can’t make it first, then let’s make it second. It’s not the final round yet. We’ve still got two bands to eliminate.”

“If you’re so sure,  _ leader _ .”

It was hard to miss the disappointment in Ryuji’s voice. Yusuke simply nodded.  
When the girls were done, they passed by them with their head high.  
Ren tried to give a peace offering and walked towards them.

“Great job, Phantoms,” he said.

“Yes, well. No thanks to you.” Ann sneered.

“It was an accident! Yusuke was just…”

“Bro? Your guitar. You’re waited for on stage.”

As the others marched without addressing them so much as a second glance, Futaba was holding out his guitar with a wolfish grin.

“Do your worst, Joker. You know you can’t best us.”

Numbly, Ren strapped his guitar on his back and went to join the rest of the Thieves on stage.

The lights were nice, not blinding this time, and Yusuke looked satisfied.

“Hello again. We’re the Thieves, number four, and we’re going to give our best for this set!”

It was hard to get the crowd pumped up after the girls’ show. Ren was starting to seriously doubt their playlist, but he had to believe in his own words.

He stood his stance. They all looked at each other, Goro turned towards them, making sure they were all ready while adjusting his violin under his chin.

Then he tapped his bow against the strings three times, and started playing the first bars of the intro of  [ Numb ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G31N_11ee84) alone.  
Then they joined him. As Ren played the first chords, he blanched.  
He hadn’t checked his guitar.  
The guitar that Futaba had held out for him.

The guitar that was now tuned half a tone too low for this song.

_ Curse this little gremlin _ .

The crowd didn’t seem to notice a difference for the moment, too focused on Goro’s violin, but Goro himself turned toward Ren and raised an eyebrow.  
Ren tried to discreetly point Futaba (who was staring at them from the pit, and this time there was no light to prevent them from noticing her mischievous smile).  
Unaware of the exchange, Ryuji and Yusuke kept playing.

They were fucked.  
They were so fucked.

Then Goro concluded the introduction and, while lowering his violin, made a shushing gesture at Ren before starting to sing the verse.  
Ren sang the rapped parts along but was careful not to touch his guitar anymore. When Yusuke and Ryuji noticed the lack of the instrument, he just mouthed  _ follow Goro _ .  
Really, Goro should have been the leader all along, Ren bitterly thought. He was the one with the musical knowledge.  
And sure enough, Goro gestured for Ren to start playing the chords again, while hushing Yusuke who let his bass hang from its strap.

“Caught in the undertow,” Ren sang in the microphone, before Goro tapped four times in the microphone, looking pointedly at Ryuji.

Ren winced and started playing his four chords, terrified at how out of tune it was going to end.

Then Goro  _ winked _ at the audience and his whole body language changed.

“ [ I’m your biggest fan, I’ll follow you until you until you love me ](https://youtu.be/6nIvBI2_hSY?t=41) …”

Ryuji slipped for two beats but quickly caught on the change of rhythm and atmosphere, making great use of his beloved splash cymbal.  
Ren kept playing, but it was good that his guitar was strapped, or he might have dropped it.

_ Half a tone lower.  
_ _ Four chord song medley.  
_ _ Fuck, Goro is a genius _ .

He’d never wanted to kiss him so bad. He kept on playing, until the end of the chorus, for which Goro re-adjusted his violin and shushed Ren, allowing Yusuke to play again.  
The change of tone was just small enough that the audience didn’t fully notice. Something was  _ wrong _ but nothing was  _ shocking _ and the audience was just stunned at the cheeky mash-up they’d just done.  
After Goro played the bridge, as they went for Numb’s second verse, Ren caught Futaba’s eyes.  
She was seething.  
He smirked, rapping along.

Goro stopped them all at once after the verse and sang alone, a capella

“I’ve become so numb…”

The sentence hung through the room, echoed with the reverb of the microphone. Then Goro pointed towards Ren, giving him a low rhythm, motioning arpeggios.  
Ren had no idea what to expect. He merely followed the indication and slowly played note after note, like a lament for everything they'd planned.

Goro’s voice exploded in the microphone, his body language changing again to one of pure pain.

“ [ Hello from the other side! ](https://youtu.be/5GQnC6UUsZw?t=259) ”

Ren almost dropped his guitar again. How did Goro manage? Where did all his emotions come from, when he had such a hard time expressing them? Was it the music? Was there even a _point_ for him to keep playing when this voice was everything he needed?  
He tried to play as softly as he could to emphasize Goro’s voice, to set the right atmosphere.

The audience was frozen. The moment held. The lights became blue, while just a ray of white fell on Goro.  
He looked out of his world.

As he concluded with a long, pained “anymore”, the crowd remained silent.

Then he took his initial posture and looked straight at the pit.

The audience transformed into a deafening booming sound of cheers and applauds.  
Goro bowed.

Ren wanted to stop everything, to pull his boyfriend in his arms, to applaud his bout of improvised creativity. Yusuke was beaming. Ryuji just looked stunned, as if unsure of what had just happened.  
Instead, Ren re-tuned his guitar and they went on with the planned set.

“Alright, after this little musical trip through genres, let’s now play something a little more catchy. I want to see you jump!”

Goro had chosen the second song, and it was a safe bet. Truly, it was like it had been tailored for him, just the right voice, just the right lyrics. It was sure to be a hit with the audience.  
Ryuji set the rhythm, Ren started playing.  
He couldn’t repress a shiver when Goro’s sarcastic laughter bounced from the speakers to the walls of the venue.

“ [ Ahahaha… this is about you ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJkj3DgW8Y0&list=RDSJkj3DgW8Y0&start_radio=1) .”

Goro was panting the lyrics, jumping everywhere, his dramatic self all forgotten. It was all fire, and rage, as Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing echoed through the venue, and the audience jumped.

The lights started flashing at the same rhythm as the chorus, as Goro jumped along, and Ren let himself be carried.  
There it was again, after the atrocious moment of uncertainty that had been the previous song, the rush of adrenaline. The feeling that he was doing exactly what he was meant to do, exactly how he was meant to do it.

As Goro delivered the spoken part at an unsettling pace, Ren saw the girls at the front make a face. He made an apologetic face and went on.

The song was a huge hit.  
Ren thought he couldn’t get prouder, but as it turned out, he still could.  
He marvelled at how well they managed to get in tune now, despite their rocky beginnings.

As the song reached its end, they once more got a stunningly positive reaction from the audience.

“All right, don’t lose all this good energy. We’re going to play one of the greatest classics now, so get ready and sing along if you feel like it.”

Goro adjusted his violin again.

They’d chosen  [ The Show Must Go On ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKLMYZlbIb8) as their final song for the set. Known well-enough that the audience would sing along, catchy and showy enough, and a cheeky wink at the fact that they, indeed, would like for their show to go on until the final round.

It was, without a doubt, the right choice. As the key change happened and Ren sang along the chorus, the whole venue was singing with them. People were cheering loudly.  
Queen was Ren’s favorite go-to band and he was proud of his assessment of the situation.

When he’d gotten on stage, Ren had been sure of nothing. During that first, terrible song, he was sure they’d lost.  
Now, as Goro let the final “The Show Must Go On” die down and the crowd showed how well received the song had been, he felt a confidence he hadn’t felt in a long time. He smiled his best Joker smile and grabbed the microphone.

“Thank you, guys! Don’t forget, we’re number 4, the Thieves, and we look forward to seeing you again for the final round!”

He winked, then took a deep bow along with Goro. Yusuke and Ryuji joined them.  
It took quite a while for the host to manage to calm the audience enough so he could announce the second break and voting round.

They went off stage and tried to avoid the girls the best they could.  
The competition really was on, now.

Instead, they gathered in a corner and discussed their performance.  
Even Goro bore a satisfying grin.

“Good catch on Paparazzi, Ryuji. You picked exactly the right pace.”

“Yeah, well, I kind of had to follow! What the hell were you thinking, Goro?”

Ren wondered if his bandmates had realised they’d switched to first names.

“Didn’t you notice? Amamiya’s guitar.”

Well, everyone except him, it seemed. Ren repressed a disappointed wince. It was hard to follow Goro, sometimes. Always keeping him at a metaphorical arm's length using his last name, but sometimes...

“Wha—oh! OH! That’s why you weren’t playing?”

Ren shook his head and shrugged.

“Futaba is an imp but it all worked out in the end. Congrats, Goro.”

“Oh, ugh, hide that sappy smile.”

“Tell me, Sakamoto, how would you like him to hide it? Would you mind if it were hidden beneath my mouth?”

Oh no. The taunting was back.  
Sometimes Goro would just openly flirt for pure shock effect, and  honestly, Ren really,  _ really  _ wanted Goro to kiss his smile away right now.  
It was a wonder how easily Goro could speak about their relationship in the most teasing way, but wouldn’t let Ren show any display of affection.  
He still bumped his hand against Goro’s, who caught his eye and raised an eyebrow. Ren was pretty sure his own face was disgustingly mushy, but couldn't bring himself to care. Ryuji, on the other hand...  


“Yurk! Get a room!”

“Alright, everyone, the results are in and I can’t say they’re much of a surprise!”

The room grew expectant, turning back to the stage where the host was sporting a too-bright smile.

“Our finalists for this battle of bands are… PHANTOMS!”

The crowd cheered loudly, the memory of their stunning acapella _Wishmaster_ still fresh.  
Ren’s heart clenched.  
What if they hadn’t been chosen?  
What if the girls had won? He saw them move towards the stage, victorious grins on their faces.

“And…”

It was just a silly contest. They were just doing it for the sake of having a mutual aim. It didn’t mean anything.

“The THIEVES!”

Ren let out a breath he didn’t realise he was holding.

“Did you dare doubt us, Amamiya?”

Goro winked at him. Ryuji thumped him in the back, his face filled with pride. Yusuke chuckled.

“For this final round, our two bands will share the stage. They will play one song, and only  _ one _ , so better make it their  _ best  _ one! Phantoms will go first; everyone, take place on stage!”

The stage was barely big enough to fit them all. When they hit the stage, the girls squinted at them.  
Ren smiled. Futaba stuck out her tongue. Yusuke framed her with his fingers. She stopped.  
Goro winked.  
Makoto became red with frustration.

The atmosphere was tense. Ren could feel the audience hold its breath too.

It was so stimulating.

He grinned as they huddled on one side of the stage to leave room for the girls.  
Haru left the drum kit and took out her cello instead.  
Ren had forgotten about it.  
Damn. The girls had a lot of secret weapons too.

“Alright, everyone. Let’s take it slow to conclude.”

The song started softly, Futaba playing the piano, Ann’s voice covering it smoothly. Then Haru picked her cello and started playing too. 

“ [ Seeds of eulogy… ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eALDD5XaQuw) ”

Ren bit his inner cheek. Ann’s lyrical voice was too good.  
Makoto just stood in the shadow, waiting for the cue.  
It arrived after a final, slow motion of Haru’s bow. She carefully discarded the cello and ran behind the drum set. Then she glanced at Makoto, and as the guitarist started playing powerful chords, she went into the most powerful drum solo Ren had heard.

Makoto’s guitar solo followed suit.

The ending had Futaba play a whole symphonic accompaniment on her keyboard, while Haru and Makoto’s instruments became more powerful too, Ann’s lyrical voice embracing them all in an explosion of emotions.  
The lights were blue, with slight wave motions, and once again, the girls had entranced the audience.  
As the girls completed the song, the final note dying on Ann’s lips, Ren realised that there was no way they could win this one.  
The girls bowed. People in the audience were crying. Some people were holding hands, bodies were crushed against each other in embrace. Everyone was applauding with reverence.

Ren looked at his fellow bandmates, trying to quench the panic rising within him.  
How could they compete?  
They had counted on the effect of surprise for the last song, a composition they’d try to put all together months ago, even before the idea of the contest came up. The ideas had been good, but not good enough for them to make it really good.   
Then they’d split into two bands, and Goro, musical devil Goro, had come and added his own touch to the song, and Ren had worked on it over and over again to perfect it.

Tonight would be the first time they’d play it for an audience. They intended to play it for the girls.

Still, Ren was painfully aware that no matter how great their own song was, it would never compete against the girls—the  _ Phantoms _ —’s amazing show.  
They were just way too good.

As if hearing Ren’s internal moping, Goro came closer and breathed in his ear:

“We can still win it. Trust me. I have done some research and I know  _ exactly _ what the audience likes. When the time comes, just play along.”

“What do you…”

“You  _ will _ play  _ well _ along.”

Ren gulped, faced with the fire in Goro’s eyes, and nodded. Goro had proven quite well already that when he had a plan for the band, it was a good one, and Ren was ready to play by ear if needed.  
After all, that was how they’d managed to get so far in the competition.

Goro held his gaze for a while, searching and intense. Just as Ren started to think he was about to say something else, he dropped it and went to fetch his violin.

Ren settled, checking if Ryuji and Yusuke were ready.

“Alright guys, this one is our own composition, and we hope you enjoy it!”

Ryuji gave the rhythm, and they started playing.

Then Ren lowered to the microphone, and, with his most charming smile, he started singing.

“ [ It’s now or never, and I’ve got to make my decision ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6x_HR9oGlM) ”

Ren’s voice was horrible when he tried to sing with a full voice.  
Still, as they were working on this song, they’d realised that his voice wasn’t half bad so long as he didn’t sing. For rapped parts, like on Numb, or half sung, half spoken parts like these verses, it could be perfect, well articulated, just cheeky enough.  
This was Goro’s idea.

The verse flew from his lips, along a heavy rhythm that Yusuke’s bass and Ryuji’s drums helped him keep. It was delightful. It was heady. Ren could feel it from the inside, the loud beat repeating. Boom. Boom.

Goro remained hidden in the shadow, violin in hands. Adding string parts to the song was his idea too, of course. 

He stepped in for the chorus, singing while playing, while Ren stepped back and tried not to stare too much.  
They’d probably be nowhere without him, and once more Ren felt like yelling how proud of his (gorgeous) boyfriend he was to the world.

_ Keep it low _ .  _ Yusuke and Ryuji may have been accepting, but the girls don’t know yet. _

Somehow, it just added to the thrill.

Ren caught Ann’s eyes. She was frowning, as if trying to picture what was happening. He just smirked at her and stepped forward for the second verse.  
He could almost feel it, the long coat, the swirling motion as Joker went through Mementos. He channelled the energy, threw it at people in the front row who were gaping openly.  
He winked.   
The girl he was looking at squealed. Goro side-eyed him. Ren grinned and let him take the microphone again for the chorus.  
Goro’s fingers were running again on the neck of the violin again, the exact sound needed to complement the tune.  
The audience was getting into the song, following the rhythm set by Ryuji’s sticks bouncing louder and louder on his bass drum.

Then the song quieted for the bridge.

Ryuji toned his beats down. Ren stopped playing but remained beside Goro, ready for the cue to start playing again.

“Can I find… Some time…iiin...”

Ryuji started banging the escalation. Ren played the first chord.  
Except instead of starting to sing the chorus again, Goro turned towards him and grabbed him by the collar.

_ What are you doing? _ Ren tried to hide his panic and convey the question through his eyes.

Goro smirked and mouthed “ _fanservice_ ”...

...before kissing him full on the lips.

The squealing from the front row of the pit grew louder.

Ren’s brain was too busy trying to process the current situation to assess how efficient this move was.  
Goro, Goro who never agreed to any kind of display of affection in public, was kissing him, full, in front of a 300-people audience. Goro’s tongue was licking at his lips and Ren almost dropped his plectrum.

“Keep playing.” Goro mouthed against his lips, the motion sending tingles through Ren’s whole body.

Ren kept playing, uncertain of what exactly he was meant to play, but it seemed to be good enough.  
He didn’t really care.  
Goro was still kissing him, his gloved fingers stuck in his hair, giving a show to the whole venue, and Ren couldn’t help but enjoy it, enjoy it so much, showing the squealing fangirls in the front that they were an item, and showing the world that this musical genius, this beautiful bastard, was his to kiss.  
The audience was whooping.

In the back, far away from Ren’s current focus, Ryuji and Yusuke kept playing too.

Ren closed his eyes.  
And opened them again when a loud BOOM echoed through the venue, followed by a whub whub whub that absolutely none of their instruments could do.  
Behind her keyboard, Futaba had seemingly grown tired of the blatant display of attention seeking, and tried to divert the attention by going back to playing some kind of heavy dubstep-metal that fitted perfectly with the lines Yusuke was still playing.

Goro let go of a still slightly dazed Ren. The girls took advantage of the floating awkward moment that followed to come back on the front of the stage.  
Despite Makoto’s frown and Ann’s pout, they settled beside the boys and started playing too.

_ They were here when you started writing the song _ , Ren’s mind slowly came back to reality.  
_ They can play it too _ .

And sure enough, they joined them. Makoto took over Ren’s rhythm. Futaba added sound effects. Goro focused back on the violin, as Ann picked up the singing.

Together, they went for another verse. Ren marveled at how they managed, all, to go along.

They concluded on a final chorus, Haru on the cello, Goro on the violin, Futaba adding electronic sounds. 

The crowd was cheering louder than ever. Ren let the voices of a faceless mass carry him as he stood back to back with Goro, sweat dripping from his brow, his grin so wide his cheeks hurt, overwhelmed by the exhilarating feeling of proximity and working  _ all together again _ .

It was  _ working _ .

They concluded the song. The host tried to get back on stage, but Morgana was faster.  
...Morgana?

When had Morgana even been in this venue? Surely, such loud sound wasn’t good for feline ears at all.  
Haru threw Ren a sheepish look.

“He wanted to see us…”

"GUYS, THAT WAS SO COOL ! It was like watching you back in Mementos ! Do it again !"

They all stopped and looked at Morgana, then looked at each other, their positions, their instruments, recalling how suddenly they had finally managed to find the right pace, the right tune.  
The perfect harmony.

While the crowd was losing it at the sight of  _ a cat yowling on stage _ , Ren grabbed Goro by the shoulders.

“You’re a genius.”

“I know.”

“May I?”

“Please.”

In front of the loudest crowd of the night, under the baffled/amused/slightly disgusted looks of their bandmates, Ren dived to kiss Goro again, fully, trying to express all his pride, his gratitude at his being here, being able to bring back the harmony he thought they’d lost.

“You’d better not disappear on us again, Goro Akechi.” Ren whispered against his lips. “You’re a part of this, now. A part of us.”

Ren didn’t miss the rising corner of Goro’s lips.  
He did miss Futaba sneaking on him and punching him in the arm, though. He yelped.

“We’ll have to discuss it, bro.”

He smiled sheepishly, then turned his focus back to the still very noisy audience.  
Together, they bowed, leaving room for the host to wrap up.

* * *

“A tie?!”

Ryuji made a face. Ann mirrored it.

“You know it was the best outcome, Sakamoto. Why the long face?”

They’d all regrouped backstage after the results, cleaning their instruments and packing them back.

“Both bands deserved to win, so both bands won.”

“And since we play together anyway, it’s not like we have to split the prize.”

As it turned out, the prize for the winner was being invited to record an EP from a local studio.

“So we’re doing it together?”

“As a team. You know, what we used to do best.” 

“I reckon we weren’t half bad on stage…”

“Do you think we would have won if we were?”

“You could be playing the drums, Ryuji, and I the cello. I can growl, too.”

“Yeah, and I can sing and leave the bass to Yusuke, while Makoto and Ren both split guitar parts. Twin guitars are so cool!”

The band was taking shape. Ren felt his heart grow three sizes. It was like watching them discuss their strengths and weaknesses all over again.  
They were going to make it work.

“We need to sign the papers, though,” Makoto pointed.

Haru sighed.

“That’s a lot of papers… I’ll have my lawyers check it, I guess. But look, they’re asking for a name here.”

“So, what do we call ourselves?”

Ren smirked as the words tumbled low from his lips in the first very assertive voice he hadn’t had to force out of himself for the whole evening.

“The Phantom Thieves” 

Many snorts echoed through the room. Ryuji picked the paper and hastily scrawled down the name on it. No one discussed it—it was too obvious.

“You think you’re so clever,” Goro snarked, before snaking an arm around his waist and pulling into a kiss.

_ Yes _ , Ren thought, ignoring the exclamations of the others.   
They were cheering, and still questioning, and slightly outraged, and honestly, it was alright.   
At that precise moment, he was exactly where he wanted to be. Surrounded by his teammates, in the arms of someone he’d learnt to love, and looking forward to another adventure—with less life-threats, and more bum notes.

He could do with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaand it's a wrap! With this, the Fix It With Music AU is complete (until I unexpectedly add more. Who knows.)  
> I hope you all enjoyed this musical trip to Bonding Back With Old Friends And Flames Is Hard. <3
> 
> And now it's over, I wish to send ALL MY GRATITUDE TO:  
> \- [Kuma](https://twitter.com/kailkuma), obviously, who's a gorgeous and adorable person, and whose art is no less gorgeous and also VERY HOT. Thank you for the inspiration, for the patience, for being an amazing friend. This whole big bang was a ride and I'm glad you were by my dise!  
> \- [Tomi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tomi_Lang), who not only helped bring most of the headcanons to life, fed me with ideas, but also hopefully will find ideas to dig into for what may come after for The Phantom Thieves... and helped alpha-reading. You're the best creative rat ever!  
> \- [Eyrist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eyrist), who also helped a lot in cheer-reading and beta-ing. Thank you so much, kit <3  
> \- [Curos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dcuros), who's been hella patient with me and cheering on me all this painful writing time. I love you so much chou.  
> \- Qualia, who shares my passion for music AUs and also helped TONS in inspiring all of this!  
> \- And YOU, who took the time to read, and kudos, and comment, THANK YOU SO MUCH! 
> 
> See you all for another story, soon enough I hope!


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